Man Placed in ICE Custody After Misdemeanor Traffic Conviction
Thursday afternoon, Jander Alexander Cordero-Silva, 29, was convicted of driving with a suspended or revoked license and later placed into the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
On May 18, Gainesville Police Department (GPD) Officer Larry Prunty conducted a traffic stop on Cordero-Silva.
A dispatcher told Prunty that Cordero-Silva’s license was invalid. Prunty reported that documentation provided by Cordero-Silva, which was dated May 6, showed his license was suspended.
Prunty reported that Cordero-Silva "advised he had knowledge that his driver's license was suspended... [but] stated he appeared in court approximately three days ago in reference to his driver's license and the judge advised him that his driver's license was not suspended and that he was able to drive."
The documentation cited by Prunty shows Cordero-Silva’s license was suspended for a mandatory 30-day period by the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) due to accumulating 12 points in 12 months, in addition to a suspension pertaining to financial obligations.
Court records show Cordero-Silva did appear before Judge Susan Miller-Jones on May 14 for a traffic infraction that occurred in March. Court documentation shows Miller-Jones did not impose a suspension for the infraction. The disposition form included standard conditions warning Cordero-Silva that his license would be suspended if he didn't pay citation fees and complete other requirements. The phrasing implies that Cordero-Silva's license wasn't suspended, but it doesn't override existing administrative action by the FLHSMV.
Prunty arrested Cordero-Silva and charged him with driving with a suspended or revoked license, a second-degree misdemeanor.
GPD has not signed a 287(g) agreement with ICE, but all individuals arrested in the county are held in the Alachua County Jail. The jail is under the authority of the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office, which has signed the 287(g) agreement.
On June 18, Cordero-Silva was convicted as charged in a no-contest plea agreement. Judge Meshon Rawls imposed a time-served sentence, but Cordero-Silva remained in the Alachua County Jail on an ICE hold. He was placed into ICE custody two days later, and he is now held in the detention facility that Governor Ron DeSantis dubbed "Deportation Depot," i.e., the Baker Correctional Institute.
